


Wolf Just Breaks His Freaking Leg

by PoisonHemloc



Category: Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (Video Game)
Genre: Broken Bones, Gen, Mention of Child Abuse, Self-Harm, Wolf doesn't deal with things well, genichiro and isshin also show up but like barely, using small children as therapists cause you won't talk to the doctor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-14
Updated: 2020-11-14
Packaged: 2021-03-10 06:15:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27559699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PoisonHemloc/pseuds/PoisonHemloc
Summary: You read the title, you know what you're here for(This is a kind of sequel to Let's Get Wolf A Kimono)
Relationships: Kuro | The Divine Heir & Sekiro | Wolf, Sekiro | Wolf & Divine Child of Rejuvenation
Comments: 7
Kudos: 33





	Wolf Just Breaks His Freaking Leg

**Author's Note:**

> Saya is a sword sheath, Obi is a sword belt, Suneate is leg armor.
> 
> I'm still calling the Divine Child Mizuho
> 
> This has been sitting in my pile of fics since like, July. And it's been 90% complete since like, August, I just lost a lot of motivation suddenly and only recently got it back.

Wolf frowned, scanning this deserted area of the outskirts as he thought. It had been two months since Ashina’s independence celebrations, and the Interior Ministry was asking about a formal party to celebrate the peace treaty. Lord Kuro had unhappily informed him the morning before that the Hirata party of Kuro, Mizuho and himself were expected to attend. While Kuro had not had a bad time at the party, he and Mizuho had been obviously uncomfortable surrounded by adults, the few other children present playing in the dirt, while they could not get their kimono dirty.

Wolf would not admit it to Lord Kuro, but while he wanted another reason to wear the beautiful kimono he had been given, he had also had all the party experiences he could have ever wanted at the independence celebration and did not want any more. Too many people had been there, they were all much too close together, and he had needed to stay close to Kuro to effectively guard him rather than perch on a rafter or the roof where he could see over the others present, and had given himself a headache trying to see everything from a point several inches below most everyone’s heads. But if Kuro was present, Wolf would have to also be present, to protect him.

Unless.

Unless Kuro had a reason not to go. 

Traveling away from Ashina even for a short while would probably be frowned upon. They would have to inform Genichiro, and he had no reason to agree to them leaving; he had probably faked enjoying the party and Wolf doubted he would let anyone avoid another especially since he had no choice but to attend. Wolf shifted, noting the single small patrol in the area as they rounded a corner and walked under his rooftop perch. Then, he remembered an old plan from well before the celebration. 

Kuro had not seemed to like  this plan, when he first suggested it, but that was before they knew how boring the first party had been, and he hadn’t been ordered not to, and now that the patrol was wandering away, Wolf could see a series of ledges that would work. It would hurt, a serious pain he had dealt with several times before, but he had suffered worse for less. He was closer to the temple than to the castle; he could check in with Kuro in a few minutes through the shortcut, and Kuro would surely be glad for the excuse to avoid the party. 

Kuro had been half asleep, sitting on a cabinet with an open book in one hand that slowly tilted towards the floor until he jerked awake again, only for the cycle to repeat a minute later. Mizuho on the other hand had fully surrendered to sleep, curled up on a pallet in the library, when the shinobi door made its quiet clacking and woke both of them. Kuro put his book to the side, rubbing his eyes with his other hand, and looked up to greet Wolf and stopped dead.

Wolf was leaning heavily on Kusabimaru; his saya was flat against his left leg with his obi holding it in place as a makeshift splint. Kuro recognized the tightly closed jaw as usually the only indicator that his shinobi was in pain, and panicked, wondering what could have happened until an old memory surfaced; a plan he thought consigned to the graveyard had been resurrected.  _ I should have told him I had a plan to avoid the party _ Kuro thought, knowing full well he hadn’t had a plan. He jumped down from his seat as Mizuho scrambled to her feet. 

“Go get Lady Emma please, Mizuho.”

“I am fine, my lord, she doesn’t need-” 

“What happened? No, sit down first, let me help, is your leg broken?” 

Wolf decided to avoid that question. “I don’t need Lady Emma, just to let it heal, but it may take some time.”

“You jumped off a ledge in the outskirts to break it so we could avoid the party.” This had been Wolf’s backup plan if he couldn’t grasp the table manners needed for a party quickly; Kuro berated himself for thinking that Wolf wouldn’t be thinking about doing this with the news of another required party soon. Wolf frowned; Kuro did not seem excited about avoiding the party, he seemed worried, but there were footsteps rapidly approaching before Kuro could press him. 

“Lady Mizuho said Wolf is hurt? Wolf, what happened?” Emma had probably run; Mizuho was panting behind her.

“It is not that ser-”

“His leg is broken.” Wolf stopped, shocked; Kuro had never cut him off talking like that. With how worried he was, Wolf started considering that maybe this hadn’t been a good decision. Maybe he was worried it was too soon, Wolf would be on his feet again before the party? Maybe he should have waited another week rather than act this impulsively. That must be it, he was worried they would still have to go and this had been worthless. They were taking up Lady Emma’s time for nothing.

“Lower leg? I’m bringing you to my operatory to set this properly.”

“That is not-” Emma leaned in suddenly and Wolf reflexively tried to flinch backward and hit the wall, but that was the opening she wanted; before he could continue protesting one hand had grabbed his armor at his waist, the other the neck opening on his armor and a large handful of his scarf, and then he was on her shoulder and making vaguely distressed noises while she started walking.

“I need to protect Lord Kuro-”

“Lord Kuro, Lady Mizuho, then I need both of you to come as well.” Emma didn’t bother to look; Wolf was not in a position to see but he could also hear both of their footsteps following. 

“How can you-”

“Don’t act surprised, Wolf, you’ve sparred with me. And you know I’ve been Lord Isshin’s doctor for years; I have to be able to pick people up and move them.” She put him down, carefully but quickly, on a mat in the operatory and he heard her telling the children to stay in the corner near the door rather than crowd around Wolf as she reappeared with a cup of something that felt like the kind of cold you only got by leaving something hot unattended a few hours.

“I don’t care if you don’t like it. Drink it, and hold still.” She started untying the obi from his leg, then looked back up when he was still holding the full cup of what was probably cold tea spiked with sleeping drug. She held his resistant stare for three seconds then looked past the screen towards where Kuro and Mizuho were.

“Lor-”

“Fine.” Kuro tended to listen to Emma and would have parroted her order; he would be unconscious, but at least this area was hard to attack and Emma was good with a sword. He drained the cup, mouth twitching at the off taste, and pulled the mortal blade off his back and moved it to one side. He’d put Kusabimaru down when Kuro had had him sit; hopefully he had grabbed it. Emma had moved the saya out of the way but now he could tell the tea did have sleeping drug in it, and probably her pain killer; he already couldn’t feel his broken leg throb, but staying conscious was becoming a struggle he didn’t want to deal with, and so he accepted defeat.

“He’s asleep. Lord Kuro, what happened?” Emma hadn’t wanted Wolf to try and take his suneate off, he might make the break worse; the leg was already swollen and she could tell there’d be a massive bruise in a few hours, but nothing had broken through the skin, a small blessing.

“Um…” 

“Lord Kuro?”

A sigh. “I think he jumped off one of the ledges in the outskirts deliberately to break it, Lady Emma. I think he’s been planning this since Genichiro told us about the celebration for the treaty, but he mentioned doing this for the independence celebration. And with how chaotic that was, and so many people-"

“He  _ broke _ his  _ leg _ so he wouldn’t have to go to a party?”

" Probably so none of the three of us would have to. If he can’t be there to protect me, he would have argued against us being present to Lord Genichiro. I was hoping to find a way to avoid it anyway, but Wolf must have decided to act now.”

“He broke his- actually, no, this sounds like something he would do. This sounds like something Owl would have encouraged.” Quiet for a few minutes as Emma worked. “Hm. Not as bad as I thought. He’s staying here for a few weeks and I’m sure he’ll be unhappy about it, but this needs to heal correctly. I will stay here to make sure he isn’t using it. Lord Kuro, Lady Mizuho, I will request that both of you remain here as well; I can guard you adequately right now. I suppose he still gets what he wanted, but I will not force him to be at the party with a broken leg and having him fretting up here with you two at a party will end poorly for someone.” The children nodded. Emma bit her lip, thinking. This was a bad decision on Wolf’s part. She was going to talk to him as soon as he woke up from the sleeping drug. But part of her silently thanked him; she hadn’t wanted to go to anything the Interior Ministry was doing, and he had provided a good excuse.

“Kuro, why are you in here? Wher- Mizuho, you’re here too.” Genichiro had appeared half an hour into them sitting in this corner of Emma’s operatory. “What happened that both of you are here?”

“Wolf broke his leg.” Thirty seconds of silence followed the declaration before Genichiro accepted that it would not be followed up on. 

“Doesn’t he- Emma, doesn’t the shinobi have one of your healing gourds? If he’s here for a broken bone-”

“They don’t work for broken bones, like I told you when you decided you didn’t want to use one because of the taste.” Emma gave him a sweet smile, a reminder of the minor argument and her lasting annoyance after. It was well known that Wolf was the only person willing to use the healing gourds Emma had made, sparking several discussions among the retainers about what the man’s diet must be like if he could stomach the nasty taste and slimy texture. 

“I- Emma, I came because I needed to let you know Grandfather isn’t getting sick again if a retainer comes panicking, he was coughing from the dust. Lord Kuro, if your shinobi is recovering here, then for the Interior Ministry’s party-”

“I’m afraid we will not be able to attend, Lord Genichiro.” Kuro had risen from his seated position as Genichiro turned to face Emma, but still had to crane his neck back to look Genichiro in the face. “Since he is my shinobi, Wolf is responsible for my protection and insisted on me staying nearby when he was conscious. And as a member of the Hirata household by your own reckoning, Mizuho will remain here as well until Wolf can sufficiently guard us again.”

“And before you ask, I will be remaining here both to keep Wolf from injuring his leg further trying to move, and to guard Lord Kuro and Lady Mizuho. As long as they stay here I can achieve that, but I will require both of them here.” Emma had already turned back to her counter, making something that smelled strongly, before Genichiro fully turned to look at her. Kuro watched him realize that all four of them had been spared from the party by the hated shinobi, who had better coordination and balance than anyone in the castle, breaking a limb. He took a deep breath, then sighed and nodded and left, muttering a string of words Kuro was not supposed to know under his breath. 

“Genichiro, I thought you’d be out with the soldiers still!” Isshin grabbed another cup and poured sake into it, handing it over as Genichiro sat down at the offered spot. Gyoubu Masataka Oniwa, who was currently Isshin’s drinking buddy, raised an eyebrow at Genichiro’s still apparent annoyance. “What happened that got you so worked up?”

“Kuro, Mizuho, Emma and the shinobi are not going to be at the Ministry’s party.” Genichiro drained the cup in one go and refilled everyones as he continued. “ _ Somehow _ the shinobi that spends all of his time climbing and running around on the rooftops without issue broke his leg somewhere and there’s nothing Emma is willing to do to speed up the healing.” 

“And the children are refusing to go to the party because Wolf cannot?” 

“Yes. Supposedly they won’t have any protection if he isn’t present.”

“Genichiro, are you just upset because now you can’t get away with the same thing?”

“...I couldn’t try anyway. I am expected to be present no matter what shape I’m in.” Genichiro drained his cup, then suddenly focused on Isshin and his thoughtful expression, eyes narrow. “Grandfather, if I need to order someone to attend on you every moment until the party, I will. Emma talks to you every week about not go- about avoiding bone fractures. And if I have to attend, you have to attend.”

“Fine, Genichiro, I’ll be there, uninjured.”

Wolf woke up slowly, feeling the unaccustomed tightness around his leg. When he raised his head enough to check it looked like Emma had probably propped it up with something, but she had also thrown a blanket over him so he couldn’t tell.

He listened as the sleeping drug wore off more. At least three other people in this room judging by the breathing; two of them were Kuro and Mizuho, he knew what their breathing sounded like. The third was probably Emma, but he wasn’t around her often enough to memorize her breathing. 

She could recognize the change that meant he was awake, though, and walked around the panel blocking his view of most of the room. He settled back down fully, assuming that was what she wanted him to do, but she sat down next to his head and glared at him for a solid ten seconds. Wolf was better at silence, but Emma had something to say.

“You broke your leg to avoid the party.”

“I did no-”

“Do not lie to me, Wolf.” He considered the look on her face and decided he wasn’t winning that battle.

“...yes.”

“There were so many other ways you could have gotten yourself and Kuro and Mizuho out of attending. You’ve told me how you react to alcohol, you could have had a cup the morning of and lied about it like you just tried to do to me. You could have taken them to the Fountainhead palace and claimed it was for a good reason. Or any of the villages, or the valley, or somewhere else you said is safe to travel now-”

“Genichiro would not have accepted th-”

“He would have had to if Kuro agreed with you, which Kuro would have, or you could have just left that morning and left a note and _do_ _not_ interrupt me again. You could have waited for Kuro to discuss not going with Genichiro when he wasn’t busy and plan around that. Or you could have just gone to the party anyway, and protected him like normal, rather than try to get out of it no matter how little you like crowds.” Wolf looked more and more sheepish with the rebuke and each suggestion he hadn’t thought of. “And instead, all three of you are going to be in here for six weeks until your leg heals because you are not moving around until I am satisfied that it has healed and you insisted that Kuro and Mizuho stay near you. And yes, Wolf, you will be here a full six weeks even if your leg isn’t properly broken because that is how long this takes and I will not let you wander off after pulling that stunt.” 

Wolf held her glare, then relented and nodded. Emma was not accepting the gracious defeat and went in for the kill. “This was. The wors- probably the worst plan you could have come up with. I know you’re smarter than this, but Kuro said you mentioned it for the independence celebration. You could have badly injured your leg past the point where I can do anything about it, Wolf, did you even think about that? You could have seriously compromised your ability to guard Kuro.” That, more than anything else she had said, hit home. She watched his eyes widen slightly, the most expression he usually showed. “Are you going to try this again, if another party happens?”

“No.”

“Good. Then I’ll get more painkiller made up, and you can go back to sleep, because that is all you will be doing for the next six weeks.” Emma walked to the countertop that ran along the back of the room as Wolf looked back up at the ceiling, feeling sick. He hadn’t considered that he might be injured enough he couldn’t guard Kuro; while he knew he had been injured worse, many times, usually the injury occurred right before something killed him and had healed as he resurrected. He had grown so used to resurrection and the healing gourd from Emma taking care of most injuries he hadn’t thought about what would happen if an injury could not be handled so easily.

Well. He had plenty of time to think about it now, if he would be here for six weeks. Definitely enough time to miss the party at least, hopefully Kuro would be happier when he knew that this hadn’t been totally pointless. Emma wordlessly put a cup near his head; she had exhausted her anger apparently and moved into no-longer-speaking-until-it-won’t-be-yelling territory. Wolf drank this one without comment; at least it was hot. And probably full of the drowsy painkiller; he let himself fall back asleep.

Kuro and Mizuho hadn’t heard Emma chewing out Wolf, which was probably good. Kuro tended to give her a hurt look if he heard Emma explaining something she felt Wolf needed to do better, like eating or sleeping on a more frequent basis, purely because Emma wouldn’t be nice about it like Kuro was. They were both asleep where she had them move after Genichiro left, to a new little section between the screen blocking Wolf from the rest of the room and another screen she had dragged over; they had been nodding off already when Wolf limped in, and the panic had finally worn off enough they had returned to their naps. 

Kuro at least had woken up an hour later; Mizuho was still asleep and it would be a while before Wolf woke up. He stayed quiet, helping Emma as she made up more painkiller from what her apprentices had been sent out to get that day. She noticed that he kept glancing over to the corner Wolf was still asleep in. He caught her look and answered, keeping his voice quiet.

“He does so much for me and now he really hurt himself just so I could avoid a party. Not even for something important. I just wasn’t looking forward to being bored.”

“Wolf was trying to avoid the party himself.”

“If he was avoiding it for himself, he would have been hiding for the week leading up to it. He injured himself for me. Again.” This led Emma to put down the pestle she was using and look at Kuro, staring at the ground. “He still won’t tell me how many times he died getting to Ashina and to the castle, and usually he gives me a clear answer to a question. Even if everything’s calmed down, I can tell when he’s been looking for something for me and he died doing it and he keeps doing it. I don’t want him to get hurt or die again for me, even if I know he’ll get back up.” Kuro ran a hand through his hair, checking again to be sure Wolf was still asleep. “And he doesn’t seem to mind that he gets badly injured and killed for my sake. That’s worse, almost. I can’t tell if that’s just, how he is, or if that’s from the Heritage.”

“That is just how he is, Lord Kuro.” Emma spoke with the surety of the person who heard every complaint of aches and pains from every high ranking retainer and noble in the castle, even if getting an admission of pain from the shinobi was harder than keeping Isshin on bed rest when he was sick. 

“I don’t think that is normal.”

" It isn’t. But that is how he is.” Emma had hazy memories of seeing Owl when she was younger, probably when he came to drink Isshin’s good sake, but Orangutan had known the man and had nothing positive to say. Even with as little as he was willing to talk about how Owl acted she was surprised Wolf was as compassionate as he was; but listening to Mizuho’s account of the first few times he had come through the Inner Sanctum made it hard to believe he was faking it.

“...Do I have to stay here right now, Lady Emma, or can I go to the kitchens for an hour?” Emma frowned, but Kuro answered her unasked question. “He likes sweets. It feels like the least I can do, but it’s all I can do right now, I think.”

“Bring Lady Mizuho? Oh, wait, she’s still asleep. Yui,” The apprentice had been sleeping in a corner but had started waking up at the conversation and rose when Emma called her. “Can you go with Lord Kuro to the kitchens for an hour?” A nod, and the two left.

Mizuho was up, helping Emma grind herbs, but Wolf was still asleep when they returned, carrying the meal that the kitchen staff would normally have brought up. 

“We offered, since we were coming back anyway.” Kuro explained. “I brought rice balls, also.”

“And Lord Genichiro has a new declaration that affects you, Emma.” Yui placed the heavier bowl of soup on the ground as Kuro started unstacking smaller bowls. “Any Ashina retainers that are supposed to go to the party must attend unless they’re practically dying. The kitchen staff didn’t know why so I suppose word hasn’t gotten out about master shinobi’s broken leg.”

Wolf had started moving around as she took the cover off the soup. 

“Genichiro is worried you’ll inspire someone else who doesn’t want to go to the party, Wolf. He told his retainers they must be present unless they are almost dead. Don’t worry,” she saw the face he made. “The kitchens hear all the gossip first and they didn’t know it was because of you so it’s probably just us and Genichiro.”

Yui and Mizuho handed out soup to everyone. Wolf still had the prosthetic and leaned on it, jaw tight again; on top of everything else, his phantom limb pain was flaring up. No one spoke during the meal besides asking to pass something.

After the meal, Kuro probably thought he had sneakily placed a rice ball next to Wolf, but very little escaped Wolf’s notice. It was probably a stealthy thank you for avoiding the party, Wolf decided. And it would be rude of him not to eat it. Emma was brewing tea and Wolf did not hold onto the hope that it wouldn’t be the drowsy painkiller; he carefully ate the rice ball before she finished and didn’t bother fighting to hold onto consciousness as the tea took effect.

Wolf woke up slowly. He wasn’t sure what time it was, except very late. He also wasn’t sure how he was going to spend six weeks sleeping. He’d been asleep for most of the day and now he wasn’t tired at all; it seemed he would be awake for most of the night. Mizuho had the ability to sleep a full night regardless of napping in the afternoon, Emma had made up a bed here, like she would after a battle, to be nearby, Yui had left to her own quarters, and Kuro’s breathing sounded like he was awake but he was laying still. Hopefully he would sleep soon, too; Wolf knew he had a tendency to talk and occasionally walk in his sleep, and quietly decided staying awake the rest of the night in case he had to stop Kuro sleepwalking out of the room would be good. Better than staying up because he wasn’t tired after Emma had drugged him twice.

Movement; Kuro was awake, and had finally gotten up. He appeared around the screen after a moment, frowning. 

“It’s always easy to tell if you’re awake. I can see the glow.” Wolf blinked; he forgot that his excellent night vision came with the tell-tale glow. “Wolf… you broke your leg so we wouldn’t have to go to the party.” Emma could be lied to, to try and avoid being stuck here after the party happened, but there was no reason to lie to Kuro. 

“Yes, my lord.”

“You’ve died for me and lost your arm to protect me and now you broke your leg for me.” He did not sound happy. He must have realized that Wolf couldn’t protect him now, would be useless if the party was a ruse to attack.

“This will not happen again, my lord.” How could he have not thought about his failure to protect Kuro should something happen? Especially after his death at the Hirata Estates that led Kuro to be held in the increasingly unfriendly Ashina Castle, and then his failure at the silvergrass field that led to Kuro’s reimprisonment. 

“I’m glad, Wolf. I don’t like you getting hurt for my sake.” Right, Kuro must not have been thinking along the same line as Wolf was right now. It was always jarring that Kuro thought of him as a normal person. He was a shinobi responsible for Kuro’s protection, not another noble who needed to be coddled, but Kuro had always seemed at least a little concerned when Wolf had been obviously hurt finding something for him. He’d seemed concerned if Wolf had died while he was out, too, even when Wolf was careful to make sure there was no blood on his things and any holes in his clothing had been quickly mended.

“My lord, I am your shinobi. If I need to be injured to protect you, I will do so. But I cannot protect you with a broken leg and I am sorry for not thinking of my duties before I acted so impulsively. My lord?” Kuro’s relieved smile had turned to a frown as Wolf talked.

“Wolf, I’ve never worried about that. You’ve always come to protect me, no matter what. But I know your arm hurts every few days after Genichiro cut it off. And Emma mentioned if your leg heals poorly that will hurt, too. How many other injuries do you have that cause you pain? How many did you get for my sake? I don’t want you to be in pain every day just for me.”

“I will do anything to keep you safe, my lord.”

“I know, just…” Kuro chewed on his lip, looking away. He hadn’t wanted to bring this up; Wolf had seemed almost proud, at the time, how he had decided on his own code to live by and rejected Owl. Kuro wasn’t sure how he would take this. “The way you treat yourself… It seems like you didn’t reject Owl’s code, you just removed him from it, Wolf.”

“Yes, my lord. The Iron Code has served me well; Owl ordering me to abandon my lord was his mistake. But he raised me well, until then.”

For the first time in Wolf’s memory, Kuro sounded angry, and it was directed at him. “Do you think how you were raised is how Emma was raised? Or Lord Isshin? Or Mizuho? You saw how I was raised, and it wasn’t like that. I know you’ve seen Emma’s reaction when you talk about something Owl did while he was training you, or Isshin’s, do you think the look they give you is approval?”

“...No, my lord, but I am not-”

“Owl didn’t see you as a person. He saw you as a shinobi and a tool and treated you like that was all you were and I’m worried that that is how you see yourself, too. You are my shinobi, Wolf, but you are a person, and I don’t like seeing you treat yourself like you aren’t, like Owl did.” Wolf did not respond. He spent a few moments trying to come up with something to say and failed, his brain trying to process this. Kuro must have guessed. Wolf heard the slightly shaky exhale, saw him stand. “I am sorry for snapping at you, but if you keep following Owl in this even after his death I’m worried all that will result is more pain for you, specifically. Think about it, please, Wolf?”

“I… yes, my lord. I will.” Wolf saw him nod and carefully make his way around the screen, back towards the makeshift beds he and Mizuho had set up here, and listened as he settled down and his breathing deepened. Then Wolf allowed himself to listen to his clamoring thoughts.

Take it in the order Kuro said, don’t get overwhelmed. How he had been raised was not how Emma or Kuro or anyone else he interacted with frequently had been raised, that was easy enough to grasp, he was a shinobi, not a noble, they were treated differently, right? Mizuho had been a peasant, and hadn’t Isshin been one when he was younger, and he had heard enough from both of them to know their childhoods had been more in line with Kuro’s and Emma’s than his. And Emma and Isshin had both made winced the few times he mentioned how he had been trained- raised? Both at the same time, really- and Emma might be more sentimental but Isshin’s sentimentality was reserved for children who treated him like a grandfather. But that was just nitpicking, and none of them had been raised as shinobi. That hadn’t been Kuro’s point. 

Owl hadn’t seen him as a person? That was the first part of Kuro’s point. Well, that was easy enough to grasp with how Owl had been. He had been a tool for Owl, first for whatever Owl might have needed, then a handy pawn in a futile quest for immortality. A number of the samurai in Ashina, including Genichiro, treated him similarly, like a living tool, and he had seen nothing to suggest they treated other shinobi differently; even Isshin barely saw shinobi as people. But focus on what Kuro had seemed most worried about; was  _ he _ not treating himself like a person? No, he treated himself better than Owl had treated him, but if Kuro thought he was, that he would continue to be seriously injured with how he acted, that was concerning. He put Kuro’s safety first; he didn’t push himself to exhaustion, he didn’t continue on when injured to the point he should stop and tend to his wounds or go without food or sleep-

He did. Like he was another shinobi who could be easily replaced if needed. It was better than Owl had treated him, but Wolf had the sudden thought that he could treat himself much better than Owl had and still not treat himself like a person. But wasn’t that all he was, a tool, a shinobi that could be replaced easily? Kuro seemed to think otherwise, though. Kuro, a noble child who should- who he had been taught should- only view him as another guard, thought he had value as a person for some reason. Wolf stared at the ceiling for a minute before hearing someone shift in their sleep and closing his eyes, but he wasn’t tired and his brain was racing. Injuring himself to get his master out of an annoying task was something he had done for Owl before, years ago, hadn’t he? He had forgotten but the memories came creeping back. The first time, the meeting had gone on for an hour when Owl had only wanted to spend three quarters that and Wolf had been given orders to do something so he would bleed and come in asking for Owl’s help, to force the meeting to an end. Could he imagine Sculptor having Emma do that? Or Kuro’s parent’s ordering him, if Kuro had been able to? 

No. He couldn’t. Thinking about it now, Owl hadn’t helped stitch the cut, either, while Kuro had been immediately concerned that Wolf was hurt. Kuro was treating him as a person already. Kuro  _ had _ been treating him like a person, since he began serving him. 

But now what? Kuro did not like the Iron Code and that it didn’t treat him like a person, so maybe he should remake it. He had already decided on the first part of his own code. Kuro’s orders were his priority. Kuro was his priority. But beyond that? Maybe he wanted to keep the part of the code about swearing vengeance, in case he needed it. He rubbed at the old scars on his right hand as he thought; the idea of throwing out the entire code he had based his life on up til now scared him, but he couldn’t keep it how it was. He would need to think about it. 

The drowsiness had worn off well before the painkiller, but that still started to wear off a few hours after he woke up, listening to the others occasionally move around in their sleep or Kuro say a few words in his sleep before settling back down. He intended to ignore the pain, but that was acting like he was another nameless shinobi, how Owl had taught him to act. Even if he was a nameless shinobi. Kuro wanted him to treat himself better. Unfortunately if he moved, Emma would wake up, which was good, but so would Kuro and Mizuho, which was not. Better to ask when she did wake up, if he even had to. Emma had always seemed to give people painkiller for everything including simple cuts or arrow wounds… those were serious injuries, weren’t they, and he was thinking how Owl had taught him, like he was disposable. How much of how he thought, how he was, had been shaped by Owl? Could he even move past it? 

Wolf heard one of the children move in their sleep and focused, listening, in case it was Kuro, but they settled back down. It couldn’t have been as bad as he was thinking when he had been training under Owl, could it have been? He remembered a time when Owl had praised him, that wasn’t acting like he was just a shinobi, right? Coming back to Owl’s compound, the first time Owl had called him his son- he had such a burst of pride, that he was the only one of Owl’s strays to make it that far, but now, he remembered the rest of the memory beyond the pride, how he’d limped in holding the cut on his side closed, half dead, after Owl had abandoned him in the forest to fight off the illusions that formed there as night fell. How Owl had made a big show of calling him son, then left him to deal with his injuries himself, only helping when it was clear one of the cuts was infected, and even then grumbling about how Wolf had cared for the wound poorly when he barely knew how to care for wounds back then. He must have a better memory from his training; Owl had painstakingly sat down to teach Wolf how to read and write- but no, he could handle either just enough for working as a shinobi; watching Kuro race through a book was surprising for him the first time he had watched, knowing that the speed with which Kuro could read a chapter was how long Wolf would need for a few pages. If he hadn’t needed to know how, he doubted Owl would have taught him. 

Another old memory suddenly resurfaced; when he wasn’t doing as well as Owl thought he should be, or had done something- he still wasn’t sure what the exact reason for this had been, it occurred to him now there may not have been one- he had been sent to meditate in the garden, in the back of Owl’s compound, in front of the four small mounds that he had been told held the remains of the four students Owl had had before him, who had not been able to keep up with the demands of becoming a shinobi. Three of them had fallen in the forest; the fourth, he was told, hadn’t even made it that far. He had the sudden feeling that if he mentioned it to Emma he was going to get the same look from her as when he mentioned how he used to have to spar, normally Owl, sometimes whatever other shinobi had wandered through, for food; she’d seemed concerned and that had lead to a twenty minute discussion on eating more frequently now that he didn’t have to do that. Thinking about his life before being given the assignment to guard Kuro, Wolf realized he could count on his remaining hand the number of people who treated him how Kuro did- like another person.

Kuro wanted him to treat himself like a person, too. And it wasn’t an order, not directly, but he had rarely needed a direct order from Kuro to know what he wanted. But now that he was thinking more, Wolf realized he wasn’t sure how to carry out these orders. He knew how to act as a shinobi, as a tool of Owl’s will; did he know how to act like a person? 

Daylight, finally, and Emma got up. She looked around the screen and met Wolf opening his eyes to look. 

“How does your leg feel.” He recognized that tone. He would be getting painkiller regardless of his response. 

“It hurts.” She stayed still for a moment, frowning, then nodded. Wolf heard her mutter “who is  _ that _ ” as she got a cup with what was hopefully the non drowsy painkiller. Kuro and Mizuho started moving around as well now that Emma was awake. 

Emma was just handing the painkiller to Wolf when he heard someone approaching the room. It might have been Genichiro or any of the other samurai in this castle; none of them walked like they were trying to hide and it was easy to tell where they were. 

This was a samurai, but it was Isshin, much more awake than anyone had a right to be this early. 

“Genichiro told me you were stuck here for a few weeks, Emma, so I decided to save you the trouble of coming to check on me.” 

“Thank you, Lord Isshin.” She started asking questions about how he felt as Wolf downed the cup and felt the painkiller start it’s work. After a few minutes Wolf had laid back down and heard the questions stop, then heard the footsteps come towards him. He propped himself back up on his good arm to meet Isshin’s grin.

“Sekiro, avoiding the party?” Wolf made a quiet noise that could have been taken as an affirmation or merely an acknowledgement that a statement had been made.

“You know-”

“Lord Isshin, we’ve already talked to him about it.” Kuro had fully woken up as Emma and Isshin talked. “He doesn’t need to be told off again.” 

“Really. Emma, did you help, or did you let Kuro?”

“I talked to him. Kuro, I didn’t realize you did too.” He was the topic now but not part of the conversation. Wolf lowered himself back onto the ground. 

“Last night, yes.”

“And is this happening again?” Isshin really directed that back at him after seeing him settle back down. He debated faking being knocked out by the painkiller for a second but Emma would probably call him on it.

“No.” Isshin didn’t need to know anything else. If he was awake for more of today and got a chance maybe he could talk to someone else about what he was thinking, but Isshin probably wasn’t that person. 

“And-”

“Lord Isshin, let him rest.” Emma was usually the only person willing to tell Isshin off for anything and Wolf was glad for it. He directed the rest of his questions at Emma and Kuro and left eventually; Wolf usually got by on less sleep than he had had the day before but was beginning to feel tired again, anyway, and was debating falling back asleep when a servant entered with breakfast. 

He was being handed a bowl anyway so he might as well eat. This should probably be part of treating himself like a person; he could remember, vaguely, someone telling him he needed to eat more frequently, probably at the Hirata estates. He also had crystal clear memories of Emma, multiple times since he had been at the castle, telling him to eat or eat more than he did. She had given up being nice about it after the second time, which was normal, but he had been ignoring her orders about his lifestyle for the most part.

Wolf woke up, confused; he had been eating, last he remembered. It was probably early afternoon, judging by the shadows, so he hadn’t been asleep long. He listened; only one person present. Before he could ask Mizuho appeared around the screen and settled off to his side.

“Kuro and Emma left to get more of our things. I’m supposed to ensure you don’t get up.”

“...” He didn’t like Kuro not being nearby, but he wouldn’t be able to do anything anyway if something happened. 

“I heard what Emma said. And what Kuro said.” He frowned at her; hadn’t she been asleep? “I learned how to fake sleep very well at Senpou Temple. What are your thoughts?” Oh. 

“I’m not sure how to do what Kuro has asked.” He didn’t like the idea of using Mizuho to figure out his problems, but she had offered. He didn’t need to tell her all of his thoughts from last night, just what Kuro had asked.

“Do you remember the first time we met?” 

“Yes. I was seeking the Mortal Blade for Lord Kuro.”

“I gave you rice, and you thanked me. And when I was sick, you told me to rest, and asked what you could do to help, and found a persimmon for me. And every few days after that, you showed up with another persimmon even though the illness had passed. You were the first person to treat me like another person since the monks began experimenting on us.” Wolf had propped himself up on his good arm to look at her as she stared at him. “I think you know how to treat others well, just not how to treat _ yourself _ like that. And I wish I had a simple answer, but it’s difficult to teach yourself that you deserve to be treated better than you have been.” Wolf nodded slowly. “I realize this may not be a welcome question, but… do you remember your life before Owl found you?” 

“Some. There was a merchant who would pay a fair amount for several swords collected from a battlefield that I had been following.” Judging by her frown that was not the answer she was looking for. 

“I meant… Before the monks took me, I lived with my parents and brother. Even when the monks acted like I was just a vessel for the false heritage they wanted, I could remember how my family treated me before.” There was no response from Wolf for that; he wasn’t looking at her anymore. “I apologize if those were not memories you wanted to be reminded of.”

“... I have very few memories from before. Not enough to remember like you can.” Wolf didn’t like thinking about before; now that he had been reflecting more about Owl, he did not like thinking about his time learning from the man either. And he did not remember enough from the Hirata Estates to draw on that, though he knew that had been a better time of his life up until it had been attacked.

Further discussion was cut short by Kuro and Emma returning. Emma looked around the screen as she put something down on her counter.

“Thank you, Mizuho, for keeping an eye on him.” She had started to get up once they reentered the room. “Yui should have been here by now. Keep an eye on him for just a few more minutes? I will be right back.” And she left, leaving Mizuho to settle again and Kuro to appear around the screen.

“Wolf, did you think about what I said? You fell asleep before we finished eating, so I didn’t have a chance to ask.”

“I have. And…” he shared a look with Mizuho. “I am not sure how to do as you ask but… I believe I have a starting point so I can learn.” 

“Good. And we can help, Wolf. You don’t have to learn by yourself.”

“...thank you.”

Since Wolf had broken his leg three weeks ago Emma had noticed that he was spending a lot of time talking with Kuro and Mizuho, never loudly and not as much when she was close enough to listen, but hopefully they were talking sense into him so she had decided not to interfere. He would only listen to her to a point; but he was totally loyal to Kuro and would heed anything the young lord told him. Part of her felt it was wrong, leaving the children to try and help an adult shinobi, but since they stopped talking when she was near them she couldn’t help anyway.

Kuro had asked for her help with this errand, on the day of the Interior Ministry’s party, and as they went back to his quarters under the lookout tower she took the opportunity to question him.

“You and Mizuho are talking to Wolf about not doing this again, right?”

“Yes, but it’s a bigger issue than that, Lady Emma. I don’t think Wolf wants to talk about it to other people, but he is listening to us and it sounds like he is going to be better.”

“Alright. As long as he’s doing better, but I’ll respect that he doesn’t want to talk about it. Where did you say these were?” 

Kuro and Emma returned to the doctor’s rooms only a few minutes before a hurrying servant dropped off some food; most of the castle was dealing with the arrival of the Interior Ministry’s party and either finishing preparations or subtly preparing in case this was not as friendly as it had seemed. Emma helped Wolf stand, carefully not putting weight on his bad leg, to put on the embroidered kimono the children had bought for him, and the little group of four had their own peaceful party in the operatory and retired quietly for the night.

**Author's Note:**

> Tell me if I tagged something wrong/need to change something, I think I got all of it but ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯


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